Science

Progress on a multifaceted global challenge like climate change doesn’t happen in one flash of bright light. This can lead to the impression that little is being accomplished, especially when stories highlight areas of disagreement.

Nothing can be further from the truth. In reality, progress is more like the brightening sky before dawn. We saw positive steps in 2014, and they’ll help lay the groundwork for significant climate action in 2015 in the United States and around the world.

In the U.S., we will see the EPA Clean Power Plan finalized and states taking up the challenge to develop innovative policies to reduce harmful carbon dioxide emissions from power plants. Allowing governors to do what they do best, innovating at the state level, will be a key achievement of 2015.

Internationally, more countries than ever before will be putting forward new targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions ahead of talks in December in Paris to hammer out a climate pact to replace the Kyoto Protocol.

In the New Year, we will be building on solid progress made in 2014 by governments, businesses, and individuals. Here are 10 examples:

Anyone who needs to plan for future risks -- whether a city manager, a state official, or a business leader -- needs good information that’s easy to find and easy to use. The federal government took an important step to help managers plan for the impacts of climate change with the release this month of the Climate Resilience Toolkit.

This new online portal offers a wide range of resources and interactives that consolidate some of the “greatest hits” from federal climate data sets, guidance for resilience planning, and examples of resilience projects.

The toolkit is likely to be especially helpful for communities and businesses in the early stages of resilience planning, or for individuals who want to know more about managing climate risks. I took a spin through the toolkit’s resources and here’s my take on some of its components.

Process

The toolkit promotes a five-step process for building resilience: Identify the Problem, Determine Vulnerabilities, Investigate Options, Evaluate Risks and Costs, and Take Action.

The Climate Resilience Toolkit’s five-step process for building resilience.

Statement of Bob PerciasepePresident, Center for Climate and Energy Solutions

November 2, 2014

On the release of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Synthesis Report for the Fifth Assessment:

The IPCC synthesis report delivers a critical message at a critical moment. The core findings aren’t new, but the report makes them clearer than ever, and they are worth underscoring.

It’s important to be reminded of the overwhelming scientific consensus on climate change as the United States works toward its most ambitious steps ever to cut carbon emissions and nations work toward the Paris agreement.

The core message from the IPCC is the growing urgency of action. We have real opportunities next year to make progress both in the U.S. and globally. The scientists have done their job. Now it’s up to governments to do theirs.

About C2ES: The Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES) is an independent, nonprofit, nonpartisan organization promoting strong policy and action to address the twin challenges of energy and climate change. Launched in 2011, C2ES is the successor to the Pew Center on Global Climate Change. Learn more at www.c2es.org.

A catchphrase has cropped up in discussions about climate change: “I’m not a scientist…”

You hear it from some elected leaders opposed to taking action to reduce climate risks. It’s usually followed by an argument that climate science is too hard to understand or there’s not enough information that climate change is a serious problem.

With this in mind, we’ve revamped our Science and Impacts webpages to ensure we’re providing understandable, up-to-date climate science information so that anyone can connect the choices we make in producing and consuming energy to the risks of climate impacts.

C2ES is a source of reliable information about the causes and potential consequences of climate change. The basics page provides an overview of fundamental facts and data and answers to frequently asked questions.

It has been 10 years since the movie The Day After Tomorrow offered a highly embellished vision of a climate “tipping point” in which polar ice sheets melt, shut down the Gulf Stream, and plunge Europe and much of the U.S. into a deep freeze.

While most of The Day After Tomorrow is safely in the realm of science fiction, there is real science to back up concerns that tipping points in the climate system could cause potentially irreversible, and in some cases drastic, changes in our climate.

Welcome Kids!

Weather vs. Climate

Weather refers to the state of the atmosphere over several minutes up to several days. It includes lots of things that should be familiar - temperature, humidity, rain, snow, wind speeds, or wind direction. Climate refers to the long-term average (and other statistics) of weather measured over long periods of time (at least several decades).

Here’s a simple way to think about it: Climate is what you expect, but weather is what you get. Say you were going to visit Southern California for a few days in April. You would expect it to be sunny and pleasant, because that’s what the climate of Southern California is usually like in April. It might turn out to be sunny during your trip, or it could rain, be cloudy, chilly or hot. All of those are examples of the weather during those few days.

The C2ES Kids Corner is designed to help you understand how and why our climate is changing, how climate change affects us, and what people can do to slow climate change and prepare for it.

The Science

The Greenhouse Effect and Climate Change

The picture below shows the greenhouse effect. It is a natural process that warms the planet. Light from the sun passes through the atmosphere and is absorbed by the Earth's surface, warming it. Greenhouse gases, like carbon dioxide, act like a blanket, trapping heat near the surface and raising the temperature.

Human activities are increasing the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. This traps more heat. In other words, as we add more greenhouse gases, we thicken the blanket that traps heat near the surface. This process is referred to as the human-induced greenhouse effect.

Greenhouse gases stay in the atmosphere for a long time. Although plants and the ocean absorb carbon dioxide, they can’t keep up with all the extra carbon dioxide that people have been putting into the atmosphere. So the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has been increasing over time.

Where do greenhouse gases come from?

Up until about 150 years ago, human activity did not produce many greenhouse gases. That changed as many important inventions and industrial innovations, like the widespread use of electricity and cars, transformed the way we live.

These inventions and innovations demand energy. Burning fossil fuels — coal, oil, and natural gas — became an important source of that energy. Burning fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

Although there are a lot of different greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide is the most important one that is produced by human activities. It is responsible for most of the “thickening of the blanket” that has trapped heat near the surface in recent decades.

Today in the United States, electricity generation is the largest source of carbon dioxide. It is responsible for nearly 40 percent of emissions. Transportation -- cars, trucks, trains, boats and airplanes – contributes a little more than 30 percent of carbon dioxide emissions. The rest come from industry, such as factories that make products we use, and from energy we use in our homes and businesses.

The Impacts

The Earth is warming. Thirteen of the 14 warmest years on record have all occurred since 2000. If we keep releasing greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, it will continue to warm. This warming brings an increased risk of climate impacts that include:

Sea Level Rise. Sea level has risen about 8 inches in the last century, making coastal storms more damaging. Scientists believe sea levels in the United States could rise 1 to 4 feet in the 21st century, and could be even higher if glaciers in Greenland or Antarctica melt especially quickly.

Threats to habitats and animals. As temperatures warm, many plants and animals have been migrating to higher elevations or toward higher latitudes. Some animals may have difficulty moving to or adapting to new habitats.

Ocean acidification. Extra carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is absorbed by the oceans, making them more acidic. This can make it difficult for corals and microorganisms that form shells to survive.

Arctic melting. Arctic temperatures are increasing at about twice the rate of the rest of the world. Because of this, the amount of ice that covers the Arctic Ocean during the summer has been shrinking.

Wildfires. These are large fires that burn vast amounts of forests and brush. When they are not controlled, wildfires can destroy homes and be deadly. The number of large wildfires and the length of the wildfire season have been increasing in recent decades. Find out how climate change will worsen wildfire conditions.

Drought. Global warming will increase the risk of drought in some regions. Also, warmer temperatures can increase water demand and evaporation, stressing water supplies. Learn about the links between climate change and drought.

These impacts are already happening in many places around the world and will likely grow worse over time as warming continues.

How can people slow warming and prepare for climate change?

There are two things we need to do:

The first is to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions responsible for climate change. We need to find ways to make energy that produce fewer greenhouse gas emissions. We also need to make those energy sources as inexpensive and easy to use as fossil fuels.

One way to reduce emissions is by using less energy, or using energy more efficiently. We can drive cars that use less gasoline or run on electricity or other alternative fuels. We can also use less energy in our homes, offices, and schools. Everyone can play a part in becoming more efficient, including government, businesses, and people like you. We'll talk about some things you can do to use less energy in the next section.

The second is to prepare for life in a changing climate. We need to make sure our buildings, roads, businesses and all the services they use can withstand the climate changes that we can’t avoid.

What can you do to help?

There are lot of things you can do to save energy and help stop global warming, like turning off the lights when you leave a room, taking shorter showers, and recycling. Now that you have some examples, you might be able think of your own ideas! Our Make an Impact program has a list of more things kids can do.

Have you ever thought that by leaving a light on, you’re wasting water, or that a leaky faucet wastes energy? It’s odd, but accurate.

That’s because water and energy are interrelated. Water is used in all phases of energy production, and energy is required to extract, pump, and move water for human consumption. Energy is also needed to treat wastewater so it can be safely returned to the environment.

Webinar 3: Innovation and effective stakeholder engagement on water and energy issues

July 24, 20142 p.m. – 3 p.m. EDT

Involving other stakeholders or partners for a water-energy project often leads to insights, innovations, and/or greater efficiency. In this third and final webinar, speakers from American Water and East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD; California) discuss how they leveraged stakeholder involvement to address water-energy challenges and implement innovations.

Suzanne Chiavari, Engineering Practice Leader from American Water, will describe some of her organization’s recent work in using renewable energy technologies, and how they’ve engaged community partners to establish greater integration across their resource management activities. Clifford Chan, Manager of Water Treatment and Distribution at EBMUD, will talk about two projects with multiple stakeholders that have helped the utility to implement its energy management strategy.